A Tale of Two Turpins
by brokenbottleaurora
Summary: True-blue Ravenclaw Lisa Turpin has always loved learning but hated surprises. During her third year at Hogwarts, she learns that life is full of both- and it's not always a bad thing.


_Disclaimer: If the Potterverse was mine, things would have gone very differently. That said, many thanks to JK Rowling for letting us play in the world she created. It's one hell of a sandbox._

* * *

Lisa Turpin scratched her sentence out for the third time as the Great Hall around her buzzed with chatter during the school-wide "quiet study" time. It was beginning to wear on her nerves.

This was only the first week of the term, yet Malfoy and Potter had already managed to cause a scene. The entire castle couldn't shut up about every sordid detail. Those who were there became instant celebrities; those who weren't claimed they were. It was shaping up to be yet another year of insanity between the two schoolyard rivals, which would leave the Hufflepuffs and her fellow Ravenclaws stuck awkwardly in the middle. To top it all off, Sirius Black, the most dangerous prisoner of Azkaban, had escaped and was rumored to be seeking a way into Hogwarts.

The third-year heaved a resigned sigh. When she had gotten her letter and a visit from McGonagall on her 11th birthday, she had been so excited to find out she was a witch. She was going to attend the finest school of magic in all of England—possibly Europe!—and learn to do magic. Real magic! Her parents had been wary at first, but they had been at a loss for how to handle her "special gifts" for years now. Lisa supposed they felt better knowing there was a reason for her strangeness beyond her bookish ways.

When she'd been sorted into Ravenclaw, she'd felt right at home. The first few months had been great, especially as she made fast friends with her roommates Sue, Mandy, and Morag. She had studied hard, made good marks, and had a very pleasant first term all the way up to Halloween. That's when her time at Hogwarts had begun to get worse. The so called Golden Trio had had their first adventure that night, and they continued to cause an uproar all the way through the Leaving Feast. The next year had been even worse with the whole Chamber-of-Secrets, Heir-of-Slytherin debacle—though Lisa did feel a bit bad for not believing Potter.

It had been very difficult for those not involved in the Gryffindors' insane plots to maintain a clear head, and Lisa didn't appreciate having to devote more of her precious free time than necessary to her homework when she could be learning something fun and exciting. Not that she was getting any of said homework done here.

Lisa began packing her bags and slipped off toward the secret passage that connected the antechamber near the head's table to a hallway just off Ravenclaw tower. As she reached out to turn the knob, she heard a strange tinkling sound behind her, as if someone had tried to muffle the sound of breaking glass. She turned to see a pair of ghosts on the other end of the Great Hall galloping directly toward her on their spectral steeds. The rider in back was missing his head; Lisa thanked God that she was at least somewhat used to ghosts missing body parts. It was a bit of a shock when she saw the missing head swinging from the first rider's fist as he threw his head back laughing at his companion. As they neared her, she scoffed loudly in disdain.

The first rider turned to look at her and, a look of shock in his eyes, pulled the reins so sharply that he nearly went arse over teakettle off his horse. The second rider snatched his head back and rode off through the castle walls.

"My Lizzy," the man breathed, sliding from his horse. "It simply can't be."

Although she logically knew he could do her no harm, Lisa began slowly backing away from the ghost. "My name's not Lizzy. It's Lisa," she said with more bravery than she felt.

The hope fell like lead from his face. "Forgive me, my dear; I let my surprise get the best of me. I apologize for scaring you in such a way," he murmured, stepping away from her and taking off the dark tricorne hat that had kept his brow in shadow.

Lisa sucked in a breath when they locked eyes. The same eyes.

The Turpins had long joked that any infidelity in their family would immediately be spotted because of their unusual coloring. Generations of Turpins had been known for their deep, espresso brown hair, pale skin, and ghostly pale eyes. It was so strange for Lisa to see those same traits mirrored in another's face, especially a dead one. As her brain began to catch up with the action, the idea that she could be related to this… man… didn't make any sense. She knew that only magical people could come back as ghosts, and she was a muggle-born, with no magic in her family for as far back as anyone knew. But what if…

"Who are you?" she blurted out, stepping back again to take a better look at the man. He wore a long woolen coat, breeches that appeared well-made, and comfortable leather shoes that had a small heel. He looked to be very much the proper middle-class gentleman from… Lisa wracked her brain… 250 or so years ago!

The man chuckled at her breach of manners. "Everyone in my time called me Dick," he drawled, "but I would prefer you call me Richard. Richard Turpin."

Lisa collapsed against the doorframe, thankful for the stone casings to hold her steady. "You can't be…" she muttered, wracking her brain for a more reasonable, less shocking solution to the situation.

"It seems I can, my dear," he said, a kind smile sweeping over his strong features. "I take it this comes as a bit of a shock to you, Miss…?"

"Lisa. Lisa Turpin."

It was Richard's turn to gasp for an unnecessary breath. "After all these years… Elizabeth told me that Lizzy and James hadn't inherited my magic. I saw it for myself. It seems too impossible to think that it's remained in the family, hidden, waiting to appear after all this time…"

In a daze, Lisa managed to turn the doorknob and start down the secret passageway, motioning for Richard to follow her. She had so many questions.

As Richard began telling his story, Lisa's heart broke for him. Born a wizard just after the turn of the 18th century, he'd fallen madly in love with a muggle woman named Elizabeth Millington. She hadn't cared that he had magic, that he was different; she had simply loved him. Together they had two children, John first and then Lizzy, named after her mother who died just after her birth. Richard had tried to be a butcher like his father before him, but it seemed the muggles in town knew that something was different about him, and in the 1720's, different was to be avoided at all cost. He thanked Merlin everyday that his young children had showed no signs of magic. With a heavy heart, he sent both children off to live with his Squib sister in Kent as he began roaming the country looking for work. He sent every penny he could spare back to her for their care.

In the late 1730's, over 10 years since he'd last seen his children, Richard was accused of stealing horses, which was punishable by death. Richard knew he had done no such thing. No, the only crime Richard had committed was staying in one village for too long and allowing his neighbors to become suspicious of his "different" ways. He was hung for his crimes in 1739, and, afraid to pass on without seeing his children grow up, he'd refused to pass on. Richard had moved with supernatural speed down to Kent, eager to see John and Lizzy. It had nearly broken him to realize that, being non-magical, they would never see him. He spent one full day following them, seeing the joy they had achieved in their new lives, and left at midnight, never to return.

Lisa, tears pouring down her face, sat in the empty classroom and simply stared at her ancestor for a moment. How did she tell him that she knew exactly who he was talking about?—or, at least, about John. Lisa's father was a bit of a history buff, and he'd traced his ancestry back ten generations to none other than one John Turpin from Kent. He'd named her own younger brother after him. And Lisa? Her full name was Elisabeth Turpin, after John's sister Elizabeth who had died without ever having children.

"Sir," she trembled, "how much would you like to know about the family? I don't know a lot about our history, but I'm sure I could get my dad to owl me—"

The ghost held up a shimmering hand to stop her as he stood behind the lectern looking pensive. "I could tell you that I want to hear everything," he said. "But that would be a lie, and I refuse to lie to my family ever again." Lisa breathed a small sigh of relief. "However," he continued, "I would very much like to know about the here and now. You said you had a brother?"

The two Turpins chatted back and forth for hours until Lisa finally glanced down at her watch. "Shit!" she cried. "I'm late for curfew! Ugh, my housemates will never let it go if I lose points this early in the term."

Richard winked and swept a bow toward her. "My dear daughter, if you would allow me to clear your path back to Ravenclaw tower, I would be supremely honored," he intoned with a twinkle in his eye—her eye.

Lisa giggled and nodded. "Can I see you here again next week?" she said, sobering. She hated to think her relationship with her ancestor could be just a flash in the pan. He was just so full of knowledge about history and politics and culture—because he'd really been there! She had so much left to ask him!

Richard chuckled. "Of course, my dear. I wouldn't miss it for the world. Now, let's get you to bed, shall we?"

Lisa followed the ghost out of the classroom. Maybe those Gryffindors aren't so crazy, she thought as she whispered the answer to the riddling door knocker. A little adventure and surprise—mixed in with learning, of course—was fun now and again.

* * *

Written as an alternate story for QLFC Season 6, Round 8

Seeker, Wigtown Wanderers- all the love to my fabulous betas, Dina and Aya (and anyone else I'm forgetting- let me know!).


End file.
